Portable Hole | Vanishing Tunnel Mod

What the Portable Hole Mod Does

Portable Hole is a Minecraft mod by Fuzs that adds one clever item, the Portable Hole, which opens a short 3x3 tunnel through solid blocks. Right-click a wall, the ground, or a ceiling and a passage appears in that direction. The removed blocks come back after a few seconds, so you dash through before the tunnel seals behind you. Nothing is permanently destroyed, which makes it a clean tool for exploration and quick escapes rather than a griefing mechanic.

The mod is a spiritual successor to the classic Portable Hole wand focus from Azanor's Thaumcraft 3, and the spark particle effects draw inspiration from Vazkii's Botania. If you played older modpacks, the look and feel will be immediately familiar.

How a Portable Hole Tunnel Works

Aim at the face of a block and right-click. A 3x3 opening carves straight into that surface, traveling a configurable depth before it stops. The blocks inside the passage vanish and leave a clean walkway. A short timer counts down, the spark and portal edge effects flicker as a warning, and the original blocks snap back into place. The side you click sets the direction, so you control whether the tunnel goes forward, down, or up.

You can tune the behavior in the config files found under the config folder in your game directory. Cooldown length, tunnel depth, how long blocks stay gone, and the maximum block hardness the hole can chew through are all adjustable. That last setting matters because it stops the item from boring through obsidian or bedrock unless you want it to.

Where to Find the Portable Hole Item

The Portable Hole is not crafted. It shows up as loot inside stronghold chests, with roughly a 20% chance per chest. That rarity keeps it feeling like a reward for going deep into the world rather than something you spam in the early game. If you want it sooner, the config lets server owners tweak drop rates or add it to other loot tables.

Shaders and Visual Compatibility

One real limitation worth flagging is the portal texture. The shimmering edge around the tunnel does not play nicely with most shader packs, and you will usually need to disable shaders while using the item or you will see a broken or invisible border instead of the intended effect. The tunnel itself still works, only the fancy visual is affected. If you rely on shaders for everyday play, bind a quick toggle so you can switch them off on demand.

Installing Portable Hole

The mod needs to be present on both the client and the server, so single player is the simplest place to try it. Pick your loader and follow the matching setup guide.

• Fabric users should install Fabric first, then drop the Portable Hole jar and its required libraries into the mods folder. The Fabric build pulls in Fabric API and Puzzles Lib as dependencies, plus a config shim for Forge settings.
• NeoForge users can follow the NeoForge install guide and add Puzzles Lib alongside the mod.
• Forge users can drop the jar straight in after setting up a Forge profile.

New to modded Minecraft in general? The general mod installation guide walks through the mods folder, profile switching, and common pitfalls.

Portable Hole FAQ

Is the tunnel permanent?

No. The removed blocks return after a few seconds. The delay is configurable, but the core design is a temporary passage, not a mining tool.

Can I reuse the Portable Hole item?

Yes. The item is not consumed on use. There is a cooldown between casts, which you can adjust in the config.

Does it work on obsidian and bedrock?

By default the hole respects a block hardness cap, so very hard blocks are off limits. You can raise or remove that cap in the config if you want a more permissive setup.

Can I craft the Portable Hole?

No recipe exists. The item only appears as stronghold chest loot, and the drop chance is configurable for server owners who want it more or less common.

Do I need it on the server too?

Yes. Because the tunnel actually removes and then restores blocks, both client and server must run the mod for the effect to sync correctly. A client-only install will not open passages on a multiplayer world.

A spiritual successor to a Thaumcraft classic, the Portable Hole trades permanence for spectacle. Grab one from a stronghold, mind the cooldown, and remember to switch your shaders off before you punch a hole through the nearest wall. For another take on breaking the usual block boundaries, the Immersive Portals mod pairs nicely with portal themed builds.